Indiana

Can We Talk?

By Abdul Hakim-Shabazz

If you are African-American and read this blog on a regular basis, we need to talk.  If you’re white and reading this, just hang out for a moment.

Like you, I’m still amazed at the events of this week and the swearing-in of Barack Obama as President.  As I watched I thought of my deceased grandfather whose right to vote wasn’t codified into law until half his life was over and my eight-year old niece whose first real memory of a President will be someone who looks like her.   With Obama’s election, I argue a great barrier has fallen and race is no longer a deal breaker for African-American empowerment.

Now with that said, with great empowerment comes great accountability.  So the fact that Thursday’s four bus stop robberies of Kipp Charter school students are the latest example of black-on-black crime is ridiculous to no end!  It is high time that black communities have said enough to predatory behavior.  And while the residents of the Kipp Charter neighborhood are outraged and are saying enough is enough, there are too many black neighborhoods across this country where residents tolerate too much predatory behavior and the local power structure would spend more time chastising the police officer who had to use more force than usual to subdue a criminal rather than the criminal who who preyed on the community.

I hate to be the bearer of bad news folks, but in this age of hope and opportunity, you’re going to have realize that some people are just no damn good and will have to be written off.  Exactly how we write them off, I’m not totally sure yet but I’ll come up with something.  But a 16-year old standing on the corner waiting for a school bus should not have to worry about being robbed at gun-point for $2 in lunch money.  

Ask any crime statistician and they will tell you that most of the crimes are committed by the same people. It’s time to take those same people and politely, or not so politely, put them away, for good.

Full post as published by Indiana Barrister on January 23, 2009 (boomark / email).